Matt Murdock
"The devil gets his due." After an accident blinded him in his childhood, Matt Murdock gained superhuman senses and currently works as a vigilante known as The Devil of Hell's Kitchen, as training for a war against an ancient evil. Description Appearance Matt is 5'08", with a lean, athletic physique. He holds himself with confidence, and is generally considered good looking by other. His reddish-brown hair is usually boyishly tussled. He often dresses comfortably and presentable, with a love of sweaters and Hawaiian shirts. As he is blind, Matt also wears sunglasses; he owns a number of different styles to go with different outfits. Personality Matt Murdock, for lack of a better term, is complicated. As a child, he felt immense guilt and loss: blaming himself for the death of his father as well as feeling lost after losing his sight. He was both heroic and selfless even as a child, as was shown best when he saved an elderly man from being hit by a truck, at the cost of his own vision. Murdock has "daddy issues" with both his actual father Jack Murdock and his subsequent father figure Stick, who treats him cold, pushes him, and can sometimes even be cruel in an effort to turn Matt into "the weapon against the hand". This conflicted relationship and rejection of any familial love has left Matt with difficulty forging real emotional connections, despite his determination to not let Stick define him. Murdock has a high desire for justice and doing the right thing. Unable to tolerate injustice, he is frustrated when the police or judicial system fail to help, which has pushed him to work as a vigilante to save people and help where the justice system could not. While fighting crime, he can be very brutal and heavily injures criminals in such manner as breaking their bones. He has hospitalized multiple criminals in this regard, with the first man he beat up having to eat through a straw for a month. However, he has avoided intentionally killing anyone so far and limits himself to hand to hand combat and sticks so as to not inflict lethal injuries, even if this results in himself getting injured during fights. This is a major point of conflict between himself and Stick, but Matt remains firmly against killing. He always attempts to avoid killing people, and has yet to kill anyone so far, as he believes he's on thin ice as it is and that doing so will make him no better than the people he's fighting. As a Catholic, Matt experiences a lot of guilt and soul-searching over his actions when he allows his anger and contempt for violent criminals to cause him to enjoy beating them bloody, and he frequently wonders whether he is doing the right thing in the eyes of God or whether he is allowing evil into his heart. Despite this, Matt has a good heart and dry, sarcastic sense of humor. He has shown compassion and friendship to Foggy Nelson and demonstrates an openness and accepting nature, such as when he invited Jessica Jones to sit with him and Foggy at lunch. He does not judge others by "appearances" or reputation, but by their actions. Biography Background Matt was born to amateur boxer Jack Murdock and his girlfriend, a library student named Maggie Grace. Shortly after Matt's birth, Maggie left after being unable to care for Matt, due to an immaturity mixed with Post-Partum Depression. For this reason, Matt was raised in poverty solely by his father. Jack urged his young son to study hard and make something of himself, so Matt would not end up like him. When Jack returned from boxing matches, Matt would stitch his injuries. During one of these sessions, Jack allowed Matthew to have a drink of scotch, to keep a steady hand. He would stay awake at night listening to sirens, and made up stories for them so they would not scare him anymore. When he was seven years old, Matt saved an elderly man from being hit by a Roxxon Oil & Chemicals truck, causing an accident. Hazardous chemicals from the flipped truck splashed across his face and came in contact with his eyes, leaving him blinded and in agony. He woke up in the hospital where he found he could hear every sound in the nearby area, which caused him pain. His father tried desperately to comfort him. He let his son touch his face so he could recognize that it was him, which seemed to calm him down. His father would go on to lose the lawsuit against Roxxon, putting them further into debt. Over the next few months, Matt learned to read Braille and began to control his heightened senses, although he kept them a secret from everyone, even his father. Jack was still working as a boxer, and had secretly started taking losses on purpose, rigging the fights to get enough money to take care of his boy. One day, while Matt was reading in Fogwell's Gym, he overheard his father being offered money to lose his upcoming fight with Carl Creel. Matt listened to his father's fight with Carl Creel on TV and cheered when his father overcame the odds and won the match. He waited at home for his father's return but became worried when he did not arrive. Later that night, he discovered that his father had been murdered in a back alley by mobsters after the fight, leaving him devastated and alone. Following the death of his father, Matt moved into Saint Agnes Orphanage, where he experienced terrible nightmares. He began to act out, getting into fights and trouble. After several months, Matt was visited by an old blind man named Stick. Stick knew that Matt's other senses had been heightened and took him for ice cream. While they sat together, Stick asked Matt what he could understand about nearby people just from listening to them. Stick promised to train Matt to control and master his "gift" and became a legal guardian. For the last ten years, Matt has lived with Stick, undergoing constant training and borderline abuse to "turn him into the perfect weapon". Matt's only real solace is on Sundays, when he is given some time to go to church. Stick thinks it's a waste of time, but Matt considers his faith and humanity valuable. Through this time, he has become very close with Father Lantom. On his 16th birthday, Stick revealed to Matt the purpose behind their training: he was to become the ultimate weapon against an ancient evil known as The Hand, which existed in the darkness and desired control over the world. This darkness was quelled once, long ago, but Stick knew that it was only a matter of time before it rose again--and it would rise soon. To further hone his weapon, Stick began sending Matt on "field tests"; missions to take on thugs in combat. These were supposed to be simple, basic training scenarios, meant to get him used to fighting in the field and taking on multiple enemies at a time. But the thing is, Matt liked it. A lot. The vigilante work was a way to let the devil out, so to speak, and against Stick's wishes he began undertaking nightly "missions", protecting people and going where the law could not or would not. He utilized a persona, claiming blocks "for the Devil of Hell's Kitchen", an old urban myth he used to scare criminals. And with the way he fought, it certainly seemed like it. For his 17th birthday, Stick presented Matt with a new uniform and a custom Billy Club, '''because "if he's gonne be an idiot and fight gangbangers every night, he may as well do it right". Since then, Matt has continued his war on injustice, pushing himself further and further every night. Appearances Defenders Volume 1 * '''Chapter 2 - ''"Private Eyes" (mentioned)'' * Chapter 3 - ''"Devil's Due" '' Relationships Foggy Nelson Matt took a liking to this brilliant young man almost immediately. Foggy is kind and accepting, and with time, they have become very good friends; Matt sees Foggy like a little brother. While they give each other shit sometimes, they care for and trust each other, and Matt sees big things ahead in Foggy's future. In a lot of ways, his friendship with Foggy is the one "normal" thing that Matt has in his life and he is very protective of him. Jack Murdock Matt's "boxing bum" father. He wasn't a particularly successful boxer, having lost more matches than he won. But Jack was still Matt's hero, and he taught his son a lot. He taught him about honor, the value of life. The importance of education and always standing back up when you're knocked down. Jack was never a great man, but he was a good man and much of Matt's anger at the world derives from his father's unsolved murder. Jessica Jones A new student at North Clinton Public School, Jessica has quickly caught Matt's interest. The rumor mill had already been discussing the girl who stood up to both Hobie Davis and Mac Gargan, and she seemed friendly, as Foggy had taken to her well enough. He could also sense something strange about her; something that made her unique among the millions of other people in the city. Upon seeing her superhuman abilities in action as the Devil, Matt has come to understand that the feeling was connected to her amazing powers. She has shown herself to be clever, fearless, and good; she naturally comes to the defense of those around her. He respects Jessica, though still keeps her at arm's length. He does not want her to get hurt, nor does he want her to become involved in the war he is destined to wage against the Hand. Paul Lantom Arguably Matt's other father figure, Father Lantom has cared for and guided Matt for years. Matt trusts Father Lantom more than anybody in the world, and regularly attends confession. While Lantom does not know all of the details, Matt has told him of his crusade against "the darkness" and Lantom is the only person beside Stick to know Matt's identity as the local vigilante. Many nights, Matt has stumbled into the church and been cared for by Father Lantom, who has stitched him up more times than he cares to think about. Stick The closest thing Matt has had to a father in the last ten years, Stick is aloof, rude, and almost cruel. He is very hard on Matt, constantly pushing him to train and "be better". He is merciless in this rigorous process, which has turned Matt into a weapon, sure, but it has also driven a considerable wedge between them. Their relationship is primarily antagonistic and they clash regularly. Matt wanted Stick to be proud of him for so long, but a decade of never being good enough has turned him bitter toward his mentor and caretaker. Character Information Notable Items * Billy Club: 'Due to his expertise with Eskrima Sticks and staves, Stick had this custom billy club made for Matt. It can be used as a short staff, or two individual sticks joined by a high tensile wire for grappling. It can also be split into two individual short sticks for close quarters combat. It is kept in a holster on the suit's left thigh. * '''Devil Uniform: '''After several months of fighting in a makeshift costume, Stick set Matt up with this custom suit of body armor, crafted by one of Stick's allies. This uniform is red and black, with a helmet resembling the Devil. This suit is highly durable, allowing him to be nearly unfazed by an opponent's attacks and recover more quickly from being hit, such as being hit in the head with a metal pipe or slammed into a wall by '''Armadillo. ' Abilities * 'Acrobatics: '''Murdock is extremely acrobatic, and could already do several agile flips as a child. He is highly skilled with parkour and free-running and able to quickly move over rooftops and climb buildings, managing to keep up with a car this way. His agility can be used to gain the upper hand against stronger opponents, and he can even able to use his supreme agility to dodge bullets even at close range. However, he is notably not quite as agile as '''Spider-Man. ' * '''Hand to Hand Fighting: '''Despite being blind, Matt was rigorously trained in martial arts by Stick at a young age, and excelled in it. He continued training himself, despite Stick giving up on him, becoming an exceptionally fit man who is extremely skilled in martial arts. Murdock eventually used his skills to fight crime as a vigilante. His fighting style incorporates Boxing, Muay Thai, Kung Fu, Karate , Judo, Aikido, Capoeira, Taekwondo, Escrima, Ninjutsu, and Pro-Wrestling. * '''Interrogation: '''Murdock is well adept in interrogation methods, being able to extract information from the criminals of Hell's Kitchen with ease, such as getting information from targets by dangling them from the edge of a building. * '''Marksmanship: '''Because of his enhanced senses, Murdock has an increased awareness of where objects are, allowing him exceptional marksmanship with both firearms and throwing weapons, with him able to quickly knock guns out of enemy's grasp with a hurled billy club. * '''Musician: As a way to train his ear and coordination, Matt is trained in both the violin and the piano. * Multilingual: '''Matt speaks fluent English and Spanish, and he knows "enough Japanese to get by" because of Stick. Of course, being blind, he understands Braille. * '''Staff Mastery: '''Thanks to his early training with Stick, Murdock is highly skilled in the use of staves and similar melee weapons. His custom billy club maximizes this skill by being able to easily change between different combinations of weapons. * '''Stealth Mastery: '''Murdock is extremely skilled in moving quietly and staying hidden. His agility helps him become hard to find as he clings on to wall corners to stay hidden and hides atop of things and strikes when necessary. Superpowers '''Enhanced Senses Despite being blinded as a child, Matt's remaining four senses are enhanced to a superhuman level, resulting in them becoming radar-like. He claims to constantly feel numerous things, including balance, direction, minuscule changes in air density, vibrations, and blankets of temperature variations, that are usually imperceptible to human beings. That, combined with his acute hearing and olfactory senses, allows Murdock to evaluate his surroundings in what he describes as an "Impressionistic painting" of the world around him, which, according to him, looks like "the world on fire". His enhanced senses grant him tremendous awareness of his surroundings on a wide range, and this makes him extremely alert to danger. * Enhanced Balance: '''Murdock's sense of balance is superhuman, giving him perfect equilibrium, coordination, dexterity, reflexes and agility, resulting in high levels of acrobatic and gymnastic ability. His dexterity and reflexes were enhanced even before his training with Stick, as he could effortlessly catch keys thrown to him while hearing the sound they made. He can instinctively react to oncoming blows nearly effortlessly with the use of his other senses, such as avoiding attacks with a sharp weapon at close quarters by hearing the noise of its approach. ' * '''Superhuman Hearing:' Matt's hearing is sharper than bat's and is extremely acute, he can clearly hear conversations, heartbeats and even breaths from several meters. He was able to hear and memorize the sound of Foggy Nelson's watch ticking, as a way to keep track of where he is, and can hear people's bones shifting as they breathe. He can also focus in on what he hears; in a crowded classroom with the teacher speaking, Murdock can hear a classmate's heartbeat accelerate when they are called on and don't know the answer. Hearing the changes in people's heartbeats allows him to predict how they feel and what actions they'll take, such as attack or run. ** Echolocation: '''Matt possesses an exceptionally advanced form of human echolocation. He is able to detect objects in his environment by sensing echoes from those objects, by actively creating and listening for sounds - for example tapping his cane, stomping of his enemies' feet, raindrops, ticking from a watch, tumbling of a safe's locks, rattling chains or even a person's heartbeat. He can interpret the sound waves reflected by nearby objects, accurately identifying their location and size. ** '''Lie Detection: '''Murdock's hearing is so acute, that he can tell whether people are lying or not, based on the rate of their heartbeats. * '''Superhuman Smell: '''His incredible olfactory senses which is even sharper than a dog allow him to detect the scent of stale cigarettes and cheap cologne three floors above him and through several walls. By smelling an old cigarette, Murdock could tell that whoever smoked it previously had rotten teeth. He was even able to smell that Foggy Nelson had onions in his lunch, the current time, but two days ago. * '''Superhuman Taste: Matt was able to tell that Jessica had been injured in a fight, due to tasting copper in the air from the blood of her open wound. Stick taught him how to train this sense, which allows him to pick out every individual ingredient of the ice cream he is eating, including that the milk used came from three different dairy farms, and that the man who served him used a certain type of soil in his garden. * '''Superhuman Touch: '''Murdock can feel the presence of those around him through vibrations, air currents and body temperatures. He can dodge attacks and projectiles by feeling them cut through the air, creating ripples of currents only detectable by him. He locates enemies through walls and from different floors by feeling the vibrations they make from moving, such as their footsteps. ** '''Electroreception: '''Murdock is able to detect electric fields, similar to a shark. ** '''Thermoreception: '''Matt Murdock can sense changes in heat in the environment. Murdock could even feel the heat generated from the blood spilling from a gunshot wound; to one-half of a degree, he is able to distinguish the difference in temperature. Trivia * Matt is left-handed. * Despite being extremely articulate, Matt has, according to his literature teacher Miss McDuffie, "the punctuation and spelling skills of somebody who was dropped on his head at an early age." * Matt Murdock suffers from depression. * He does not know the substance that blinded him, other than it was "greenish yellow" and were held in bright yellow barrels.